Their clothes tattered, the end of their fingernails jagged and bloody from scratching the constant rash that springs up on the every day. The skin is dark, not because of melanin, but layers upon layers of dirt. There is no room to sleep in, the streets are the bedroom. Forget about the ‘cheap’ Waverley blankets, these kids cover their nimble bodies with cardboard boxes. Question is, why am I ranting about children living in the streets? Let me explain.
Have you ever really noticed the look the kids give you every time they ask for coins. Or when you enter Chicken Inn just for the sheer pleasure of trying to impress friends who are already full, do you notice these kids staring right through the glass windows. Well I do! That piercing look from a tortured face of a 5 year old who knows no normal meal served straight from the pot with the extra seasoning of the cook’s love. These kids are born on the streets, raised by the crumbs of what others throw in the bin.
Yet there never seems to be any of us who are genuinely willing to help. I know most of you hand out that coin in your pocket because you want to impress your girlfriend or because you feel bad that the child asked you for money. Why not help genuinely. Wake up in the morning and get into town for the sole purpose of buying food for a crew of kids. After ya’ll claim to drink some bottles of alcohol I do not take a second look at, I guess you should be able to help feed these children. After all, what’s a plate of Sadza to a bottle of Moet? But alcohol is more important to you right?
It’s extremely sad that these children are not afforded the same amenities we have whilst growing up. No education opportunities are given to them. Their lives are basically shaped by the streets. That’s if the glue does not kill them first. I’m sad, I rarely am. I just had to let go of a pack of buns I had just bought. I can’t afford another one. Upside, at least they will get to eat. These are the thoughts of a broke ghetto youth going towards a kombi rank. At least I explained!
Inini
